IMO calls for safe maritime corridor in Black Sea
The IMO has spoken in strong terms about the ongoing situation in Ukraine, urging the safe evacuation of seafarers and ships from high-risk areas.
An extraordinary council session was held by the IMO on March 10 and 11 to address the situation for seafarers in the Black and Azov Seas, with a raft of proposed steps including allowing ships to sail from Ukrainian ports without attack; setting up humanitarian corridors for seafarers whose ships cannot immediately leave; allowing a more ‘pragmatic approach’ to the inspection of documents that might have expired; and allowing free access to wages and communications with families.
The IMO said that Ukraine had, on multiple occasions, ‘expressed its grave concerns about the Russian Federation’s unlawful unilateral actions in Crimea’ and the consequences for the safety and security of navigation in the Black Sea and Sea of Azov.
“The council strongly condemned the Russian Federation’s violation of territorial integrity and the sovereignty of a United Nations member state, extending to its territorial waters, which was inconsistent with the principles of the Charter of the United Nations and the purposes of the IMO as set forth in Article 1 of the Convention, and represents a grave danger to life and serious risk to safety of navigation and the marine environment,” it said.
“The council deplored the attacks of the Russian Federation aimed at commercial vessels, their seizures, including search and rescue vessels, threatening the safety and welfare of seafarers and the marine envinrment.”
The IMO demanded that Russia immediately stopped its ‘unlawful activities’ to ensure the safety and welfare of seafarers and the security of international shipping and the marine environment, underscoring ‘the paramount importance of preserving the safety and welfare of seafarers’.
